Network users increasingly use videos to communicate with each other through social networking systems. Whereas conventional social networking systems once limited users to communicate with written digital communications, some social networking systems currently provide options for users to send communications with a video captured by a personal computing device, such as a smart phone. For example, some social networking systems enable users to provide live video streams to other users of the social networking systems. In some instances, for instance, a social networking system uses an internal live-video-broadcasting system to broadcast a live video stream captured by a camera of a user's smartphone to other users connected to the social networking system.
Newscasters, politicians, businesses, and a variety of other users leverage live-video-stream options to quickly communicate with small or large audiences within a social networking system. During many live video streams, however, a broadcaster often lacks signals or feedback indicating whether an audience is engaging with the live video stream. Broadcasters lack feedback in such circumstances because social networking systems often transmit the live video stream to viewers in a one-way broadcast. Additionally, with many conventional live-video-broadcasting systems—including those internal to a social networking system—the broadcaster not only lacks information on whether the audience is engaging with the video, but also information indicating the viewers' reactions to the live video stream.
In addition to the limited feedback for a broadcaster, conventional live-video-broadcasting systems often lack options for a viewer to interact with the broadcaster during a live-video-stream broadcast. When using conventional live-video-broadcasting systems, moreover, viewers often also lack signals indicating other viewers' level of engagement with the same live video stream. Under such circumstances, each viewer may view the same live video stream in a vacuum—without interacting with the broadcaster or other viewers.
Accordingly, many conventional live-video-broadcasting systems lack suitable response mechanisms for a broadcaster to receive real-time indication of viewers' feedback, for viewers to engage with a broadcaster, and, similarly, for viewers to receive an indication of other viewers' levels of engagement.